Leadership (Abuja)
Pamela Sombo
28 March 2008
Abuja — The National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has given an ultimatum to the Lobi cassava flour mills on environmental sustainability.
It gave the management of the company 12 weeks to rectify the issues that constitute environmental hazard in the company or be sanctioned.
Director general of the agency, Dr. Ngeri Benebo, gave the warning during an inspection visit to the company in Makurdi, Benue State.
The DG, during the inspection visit, noticed the strong odor of cassava which could cause environmental hazards and can lead to the spread of diseases.
She also frowned at the improper effluent disposal from the company and further criticised the open air burning of solid waste in an adjoining land near the company.
The situation, she stated, cannot be accepted if the environment and its natural resources are to be sustained and if the Federal Government's target on environmental sustainability and its determination to attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) target on environmental sanitation is to be realised.
The agency is tasked with the mandate of protecting and developing the environment, biodiversity conservation and sustainable development of Nigeria's natural resources in general and environmental technology, including coordination and liaising with relevant stakeholders within and outside Nigeria on matters of enforcement of environmental standards, regulations, rules, laws, policies and guidelines.
Nigeria's diverse and rich ecosystems are threatened by problems including erosion, deforestation/logging, urbanisations, sea level rise, unsustainable agricultural activities, mining, invasive species, gas flaring such as vehicular emissions, water and air pollution, industrial pollution wide life and bush burning, over grazing, desertification, and extreme climate conditions amongst others.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Leadership. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
